European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen clearly signaled she is willing to cooperate with a group of European conservatives and reformists, including far-right MEPs such as Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy and Poland’s Law and Justice.
Speaking at the Maastricht debate organized by Politico and Studio Europa Maastricht, von der Leyen made it clear that she would not work with the far-right Identity and Democracy group.
Asked by the Greens’ Bas Eeckhout whether this approach extended to the ECR, von der Leyen said – after avoiding the topic for about a minute – “It very much depends on what the composition of the parliament is.” How is it, and who is in which group?
Earlier this year, Commission Chairman gave indication After the European elections in June, she would be willing to work with some politicians in the ECR, who are more right-wing than her own centre-right European People’s Party – albeit on her own terms.
Von der Leyen is seeking a second five-year term at the helm of the EU’s powerful executive branch. However, to get there it will need the approval of a majority of MEPs in the European Parliament, which is expected to shift to the right.